Mountain Bone
The material commonly called Mountain Bone in Raiven or Sprigg Steel in the Reman islands is an exceptionally heavy and durable metal ore found most abundantly in the Dragon Lands of western Raiven. It is also found rarely in the cliffs near Avalier and even more rarely across a small number of Reman islands. Adventi traders are known to traffic in Mountain Bone though the Federation has never confirmed whether it can be mined under the seas or if they merely acquire it from land-based miners.
Whatever the source, the properties of the material are the same. In its raw state Mountain Bone is a slightly porous ore with a somewhat chalky brownish appearance. When smelted the metal becomes significantly darker, but retains the brownish coloration leading worked forms of it to appear almost like polished stone.
This unassuming, earthy look belies the metal's incredible durability. While it is incredibly heavy for its size, owing to the sheer density of the metal, it is exceptionally resistant to damage from stress or impact.
It requires incredible temperatures to work it, far above those found in a common forge. This is perhaps why it is most associated with dragons and with smiths who use magic to work their materials, as through magic such temperatures are more easily obtained though it is not beyond possibility for traditional metalworkers to achieve. In point of fact, the dwarves of the heart ranges are the most skilled workers of Mountain Bone in the modern world, yet even among their kin it is a fading art as the material becomes increasingly difficult to acquire.
Mountain Bone is unsuitable for armor or weapon crafting due to its weight, but has been used rarely in toolmaking and more frequently in fortifications. It is said lost Dralis built entire towers from Mountain Bone and that much of the material that exists today was taken by those who tore apart that fallen city. Now the largest individual concentration of it known to exist is in the gates of Vegdan, the entrance from the dwarven trade city into their subterranean city.
Whatever the source, the properties of the material are the same. In its raw state Mountain Bone is a slightly porous ore with a somewhat chalky brownish appearance. When smelted the metal becomes significantly darker, but retains the brownish coloration leading worked forms of it to appear almost like polished stone.
This unassuming, earthy look belies the metal's incredible durability. While it is incredibly heavy for its size, owing to the sheer density of the metal, it is exceptionally resistant to damage from stress or impact.
It requires incredible temperatures to work it, far above those found in a common forge. This is perhaps why it is most associated with dragons and with smiths who use magic to work their materials, as through magic such temperatures are more easily obtained though it is not beyond possibility for traditional metalworkers to achieve. In point of fact, the dwarves of the heart ranges are the most skilled workers of Mountain Bone in the modern world, yet even among their kin it is a fading art as the material becomes increasingly difficult to acquire.
Mountain Bone is unsuitable for armor or weapon crafting due to its weight, but has been used rarely in toolmaking and more frequently in fortifications. It is said lost Dralis built entire towers from Mountain Bone and that much of the material that exists today was taken by those who tore apart that fallen city. Now the largest individual concentration of it known to exist is in the gates of Vegdan, the entrance from the dwarven trade city into their subterranean city.
Type
Ore
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